Decorating my Victorian Studio: Stories of Unusual Antiques

[@ericalbany]

The "library table" is an early 20th C. Sofa Table, designed for a specific orientation. When a large sofa was placed in the middle of the room with the back visible one of these was put behind it.

[@OdeInWessex]

Oooh you beat me to it!🥰

[@evonnagale3045]

Well, now I know what to look for to go with the couch I just picked up

[@jodierogers7111]

Yup-mid century, it was all the rage to cut them down and make them into coffee tables…. The fate of the gorgeous inlaid wood number that came from my grandmothers house. Still love it so. Few of the good ones survived as sofa tables when fashions changed.

[@SirenaSpades]

Also known as a console table

[@bethwaltz2607]

Agreed! Believe that ornate bulb places it in the Jacobean-influenced style popular in the 1920s.

[@luxcya]

Your black vase is barro negro from Oaxaca, Mexico.💜 Which made me sigh, seeing a piece of traditional mexican culture preserved with such love.

[@NicoleRudolph]

That's so awesome! I've wondered about that piece but hadn't seen anything else quite like it (and googling got me nowhere). Thank you!!

[@MiffoKarin]

I didn't realise how different it must be to go antiques shopping in the US compared to here in Sweden. What you might consider a lucky find could be just an average antique store staple to me. For example, my kitchen chairs are from the late 1800's and I found them collecting dust in a flea market.

[@nonniperkl6273]

Heh heh as a Finn I couldn’t have any more different experience in this. My very poor foremen used everything until it was beyond repair and then turned it into fire wood. Legit one of the oldest building in my town is 150 years old, school made to honour the invading tzar and u know things are going well when getting invaded by Russia actually means liberation.

[@LaviniaDeMortalium]

American's have a bad habit of throwing away their parents possession's as 'junk,' or are otherwise very limited on space (see California) and frequently purge. Most of the 'great find' antiques I've come across in my search were forgotten in someone's spacious basement back 'East,' as in the eastern half o the US where space is so readily available, things can be forgotten.

[@bow-tiedengineer4453]

the saying I've always heard for this is "in America, 100 years is a long time, but in Europe, 100 miles is a long distance." You have so much more history is so much less space, so it's no wonder you have way more cool old stuff.

[@chrish2277]

Lol, in Australia, we get excited about things from the 1920's....

[@caerrie]

I'm not big into antiques, so I may be way off base here, but I feel like this really depends on where you are in Europe though. Around the areas where my family lives, larger antiques (that are for sale) are also a rare-ish find - because many families were either bombed and lost their homes or were refugees from modern-day Poland, and thus only had a small handful of heirlooms left, usually stuff that was small enough to carry.

[@rochellehershberger9539]

Two things: Your hair is glorious! I am heading off to Pinterest to look up red/cranberry hair looks. AND I would 100% watch the heck out of a "Nicoles Antique Roadshow." Please make more content about your treasures!

[@roblove7328]

Roche, you look so beautiful, sweetheart 😘👌💘🌹 ~ Greetings from New York 😚🙏💝💐

[@andybryant1772]

It is cool looking hair. I think my sister had a dress a similar colour.

[@bobbibuttons8730]

Ahhh Nicole, you are a woman after my own heart. My living room is very much similar to yours, as my husband said to a guest we had last week “ minimalist we certainly are not” we are auction house addicts and there are certainly a few pieces that we have that I adore such as my Victorian sewing table which is difficult to describe and a wonderful display cabinet from 1890 that we picked up at auction 3 weeks ago for £30. No one wanted it because brown furniture isn’t wanted these days! Thank you for allowing us a peek into your precious items

[@kjmav10135]

I grew up around antiques, inherited what I had room for, and many,many were sold for a song. 😢 Seeing your things brings me back to my childhood, exploring so many great aunts’ fusty parlours and attics. Wonderful memories. You’ve brought them all back. Thank you. ❤️

[@user-sg4ov7ng4h]

My grandma had a big oval table that could fit like 20 people, sold it for 100 euros, like bruh that sh*t costs like 600 now, but people don't want thzm.

[@Chaotic_Pixie]

As a knitter, crocheter, and novice spinner… I think I love the spinning wheel and skeiner the most! I can just picture the woman spinning the yarn all spring and summer after the sheep were shorn and then winding it onto the skeiner to make hanks of yarn, ready for winter knitting by the whole family. I think that’s something many don’t think about… the whole family knitted back then. And thinking about all the natural dyes she would have used. Man. She had quite the set up! As a modern woman I’m envious!

[@infamoussphere7228]

Ahh, so beautiful! As someone who's Australian, lives in a city that was only founded 110 years ago (although wasn't a popular place to live until the 30s) and whose grandparents were either a) poor as dirt, b) immigrants to Australia or c) both, there's not really a lot of antiques rattling around here. You're lucky if you can get something from the 40s. So I'm very impressed by this collection, especially since so many of the pieces are family pieces!

[@julianpeppers1889]

i LOVE collecting things, and i love other people telling me about their own collections. it's especially cool that some of the items are family heirlooms

[@deniseyoung3738]

You are so fortunate to have so many lovely family things! Thanks for the tour!

[@amb163]

OMG THAT TEA SET! I'm in love! I wish I had the space, money, wherewithal to collect these kinds of pieces -- so beautiful. The only piece I have is my great-grandmother's spinning wheel, which I think dates from the late Victorian or early Edwardian period. :) Thank you for the tour!

[@coramonster]

That etagere is beautiful.

[@debcarroll8192]

The door definitely needs to lead to a secret room! I loved hearing about your antiques.

[@katharinedonnelly8343]

I loved this little tour of your antiques! I think what we collect says quite a bit about us as people and I love it when other KZbinrs (Costubers especially) let viewers in like this! Thank you for sharing!!

[@stephaniecowans3646]

LOVE the red in your hair --- it really looks good with your coloring and hairstyle! Also am drooling big time over those earrings! 😛 All the decor surrounding you is fabulous.

[@DawnOldham]

When I was ready and able to buy a brand new bedroom set (back when everything was still “matchy matchy”) I was in an interior design store one day. One of the props being used was also for sale - a reproduction of a Victorian bedroom. I had no idea what year or what era it was from, but I was drawn to it. So I bought it and had a beautiful bedspread and chair cover made. I also had valances and sheers made. As I said, I had no idea what era it was from until a friend came into the room on a house tour and exclaimed, “I never pegged you for a Victorian gal!” The headboard is humongous - very tall with gorgeous inland wood details. There is also a tall linen chest, a chest of drawers with tri-fold mirrors and two faux marble top side tables with very tall lamps to fit the size of the headboard. It’s my favorite room in the entire house! I never knew I was drawn to Victorian furniture, either!

[@claire__de__lune]

This is a great collection and you decorate with it so nicely. I think we need a full home decor tour!

[@lindaallen9721]

New subscriber-coming from Abby’s site….loving your esthetic, I wish I had been able to adopt it during my life! I’m now 63 years old and retired due to disability with a fixed income, so it is too late to start now. I do have many antiques that my parents and I collected, but they aren’t really my style. I’m sorry I missed the goth and emo eras, but they would not been a hit in the 70’s growing up. Thank you for letting me indulge in my fantasy a few minutes at a time in your videos. 💕

[@the.cityofgod]

you're 63, there's still time

[@erinrabideau3691]

I’m in love with the door to nowhere!! Also this is so my style! I’m redecorating my office in a similar way. I thrift a lot of my antiques.

[@alegnalavieenrose8120]

Oooh I’ve been dying to find out about your antiques & decor. I’ve been collecting antiques since my youth, so this is right up my alley. Thanks for finally sharing this!!! Loving the hair BTW

[@bonniehyden962]

I live in the Sticks of a rural, East Texas county. In June we moved 3 miles deeper into the woods to the property my dad (of blessed memory) bought in 1981. We're guessing the house to be 90-100 years old, built in a nearby town around the lumber mill, built by the timber company for workers. When it was moved here, 15 miles away? 🤷‍♀️ We think it was a home for at least a little while but was eventually used as a hunting camp. I've found various vintage pieces here from lamps to shelves to wall pictures, etc. Our chickens have scratched up antique jars and vases from under the house. (Good job, Ladies!) One is an Art Deco canning jar whose design was patented in 1930. My husband is going to build a shelf around top of kitchen wall to hold my pretties ...that will be used. Such as his Grandmother's square, 5 qt, crank butter churn that I still use to make butter and buttermilk from our cow. I love antiques but they must be functional for me. I can't wait to move my wood, cook stove here! Nicole, your collection is awesome! ...but I especially love the fact you have pieces from your own family. That is super special and says so much about you. Thank you for sharing these things with us. 🤗

[@AmAppleton]

That was fascinating! Also - your hair looks great

[@janesmith1398]

Thank you! I love looking at antiques and vintage items. You have a beautiful collection. I've been admiring your copy of Goldsmith's book of poems for awhile now. I inherited my grandparent's Stereoscope a few years back. It looks to be the same as the one you have. Now I'm collecting Canadian photograph cards to view with it.

[@nanettebromley8843]

What a wonderful collection. Love the sofa and the yarn/fabric creation pieces. I've just got my 1st antique piece. A singer 12k hand cranked sewing machine from 1888. She will be carefully used as getting the needles for her are a nightmare in the uk.

[@warriorgirl8118]

You were so blessed to be in the state of Virginia and go to that estate sale and get that Victorian chair for only $50 dollars 💵 wow on utube you and one other lady named Tanya are the only people I have seen that went to a barn sale or yard sale auction for vintage that was blessed enough to get antique furniture and queen Ann Victorian furniture for only $50 bucks each piece wow this just blows my mind how you guys get such a steal on these antique furniture ❤🇺🇸👍🙏💵😇🎈☮️🗽✝️✡️👼⏰

[@donkelly4718]

I have always loved your "set", so it is good to get a closer look at everything. A couple of things 1.) I love how this room, this video, and your relationship with your antiques shows that a.) Antiques should be used and lived with and b.) Mixing eras is fine.....it just looks like a collection curated over time, and the pieces just sort of blend. 2.) While I have seen this in all of your KZbin videos, so clearly it has become a sort of " set" for youtube, I did not see any sewing specific furniture which leads me to believe you have a separate space for that, but I have, in videos seen you hand sewing in this space.....I mention this to ask a question. I am looking at the idea of needing to reconfigure and redesign my fashion design studio in April when I move, likely having to downsize it and merge it into my bedroom, which has been evolving in a greens/browns Victorian witch direction and I was curious if you find the green on the walls problematic, both for KZbin and for sewing in terms of viewing colors of pieces you are working on correctly?

[@donkelly4718]

Edit: In the clip at the end showing the "forgotten items" I did notice pieces like your sewing table and cutting table were in a room with white or off white walls, so, yes, clearly a separate space, but my question still remains, lol

[@chalkncheeseneeds723]

The lamps are etched cranberry glass and are probably Bohemia in origin stunning pieces

[@SpanishEclectic]

What a treat! The settee is fantastic. I love the red glass lamps, and the black vase on the etagere. I have similar collections, with items from my grandmothers (one graduated from teaching college in Wisconsin in 1912, and had books with fancy covers and a pearl-handled dip pen she won in a poetry contest; the other lived in NYC and worked at a photography studio during WWI (age 17)...I have all of her family's photos, as well as a few pieces of her original artwork. My MIL has also gifted me items from her family. Anything from the 1880s through 1930 works in a tableau. I love rearranging things until they look 'right'. Thank you for the tour of your fascinating goodies!

[@rosestormwolf]

We had the same settee, except that it was a loveseat. The settee in your videos caught my eye when I first started watching your videos, and made me go "same furniture!!"

[@jessicahoyer38]

wow! I could listen to you talking about those pretty things forever. This was very interesting and I love every single piece!

[@MrsSweetpeach]

This was the most lovely thing to watch on a cold & snowy Michigan morning. Thank you for sharing your trove of wonderfulness.

[@rainicascadia5514]

I love this channel! Your knowledge of history and how to make such exquisite items, ( such as lampshades, shoes, clothing, etc..), just boggles the mind! Thanks for this video 💗

[@vt1527]

So many beautiful things! My most prized possession is a family heirloom. It´s a traditional austrian peasants table from 1814 (the date and names of the original owners are carved into it). What I love most about these type of tables are the big bread drawer (for the weekly loaf of bread) and the hidden compartment for valuables which can be accessed by shifting the whole table top

[@YvonneO]

Great collection Nicole, thank you it was interesting. How nice for you to have vintage family heirlooms, extra special. Like the look, you wear it well. Sweet doggie👍🤗

[@Mommacoley92]

Thank you for sharing such personal things and stories. What interests us enough to collect and spend our money on says a lot about ourselves.

[@gerileemakes]

You have enough stuff to make this a series. I'd watch!

[@Neophoia]

Bailey has good taste in furniture 💚

[@morgantornetta8599]

I'm so glad you made this video because I'm so enamored with your beautiful decor and it's great to hear the stories behind individual pieces.

[@SheshkuDeiwe]

That is some serious decorating talent to make these super unique pieces to work together so well

[@artemis2520]

The antiques are beautiful as well as the history behind them. I wish I had family photos that old, I'm so glad someone cherishes their family history that spans back generations, as not everyone has that luxury. Great video!

[@infamoussphere7228]

I think immigration is one of the things that really disrupts those collections, even when it's economic peacetime immigration and not fleeing a country. 3 out of 4 of my grandparents were immigrants, and one did have to escape Hungary pretty fast postwar. They couldn't take furniture or many items with them, so we're lucky if we have a few photos. And now I'm going to move to Finland, and I'm facing having to ship things. It's expensive, even though I'm only shipping clothes and a little bit of homewares! I can see why a lot of people just sold everything, especially in the past.

[@marikotrue3488]

I love story times! No matter how prosaic the object, the back story can be so warm and/or fascinating. My favorite backdrop piece has always been the settee. Amazing how low the price ended up being at that auction. Its acquisition was a magical combination of the right place, the right time, the right price and (wish we had video) the slightly wrong vehicle. 😉

[@melissabutcher4628]

Thank you for sharing your amazing decor! I really got hooked on your videos when I saw my cousin’s (caitlin McCarthy is my cousin on my father’s side) artwork sitting behind you 😆. I’m also a seamstress and love watching you recreate clothing in your own style! Keep these amazing videos coming.

[@becauseimafan]

I would love to see a gramophone video!! The design of your piece, the taking apart + cleaning out + reassembly, the restoration of the horn thingy; anything goes! Sounds like a lovely time ☺️🧖💆♥️

[@rebeccawhite7448]

Thank you so much for the tour! I love things old and wonderful 💐💞

[@missvioletnightchild2515]

Your étagère is the stuff of dreams! So pretty and delicate 😍 Thank you for this lovely tour, you have some gorgeous pieces ❤️

[@kitsidale]

I'm so glad you explained the random door, I've wondered about it for a while x

[@AlysianaHunter]

"Bailey from 2009" has my entire heart. Please give a pat from us who admire her. I love and covet the aesthetic you have created for your space and I hope you get much use and joy from it

[@marieangie5663]

I’ve envied your space for so long, I’d kill to have that room! Thank you for sharing♥️

[@themurrrr]

SAME!

[@marieangie5663]

@@themurrrr right!!?

[@jamietaylor4260]

Both of my grandfathers were in Italy during the war too! 36th Infantry. They brought back so many things...along with an aversion to lamb.

[@maggie8324]

Silver cleaning, spray with hairspray after polishing, have not had silver or brass to clean for years. National Trust tip.

[@michellecornum5856]

I love all the little stories..

[@twobluestripes]

Love this. More videos like this! Make it a series! I want the next one to be up-close and stories of all the stuff you “forgot” at the end!

[@kirabowie]

What a beautiful room, Nicole!😍 So many wonderful antiques! I LOVE it! ❤ (I also LOVE your earrings! Very pretty & they play nicely against the red in your hair!😊)

[@eisrua]

if, when you and the others on the cruise in October, have any free time in Southampton, I can recommend going to the Mercentile Flea in Southampton for more lovely vintage and antique pieces to add to your wonderful collection

[@evacreswell7687]

Watching this gives me such nostalgia! When visiting Michigan as a teen, we would stay with my grandma's best friend, and her house was filled with Victorian antiques. They were all pieces that had been used in her family for more than a century. I stayed in a room with a 3/4 sized bed, and I got to read old LIFE magazines (I specifically remember one from 1936 being very critical of Germany). She even had an old Sears-Robuck catalog from the 1880s, I think!

[@andinarizkia]

Oh your room is a dream. I am currently a student living in a boarding house devoid of decor funds (because they are expensive), so I couldn't buy much, but I am slowly collecting antiques. Your room is absolutely gorgeous.

[@camille_la_chenille]

There is a strong love for antiques in my family and my granparents have so many objects/pieces of furniture that have been in the family for more than a century for some; it has fascinated me for as long as I can remember. For now I still live with my parents and my room is small but I still managed to create a tiny antiques/historical nook and carefully stored the rest of my treasures while I wait to have my own house. I also inherited from all the remaining antique/vintage pieces of clothing from my maternal grandmother's side of the family, and I cherish these piece. My favourite is my great-great-grandmother's midwife apron from the early 1900.

[@mirjanbouma]

You have collected some wonderful, interesting, and gorgeous items!

[@katharinehammond3215]

Thank you for sharing your beautiful antiques with us xxx

[@lilykatmoon4508]

Wonderful antiques! Love the new hair color, very fetching!

[@elaur73]

Thank you for showing us all the wonderful things you have!

[@arianagugora6811]

You have such beautiful pieces! As a fellow lover of antique and vintage décor, I really love your decorating style.

[@crystilmurch5659]

Thank you for the tour. This was really neat. Your hair looks fantastic. Very funny that it matches the decor. Favorite piece was definitely the Bailey. :)

[@susanstage9279]

“Inherited” I love antiques! Settees are lovely! Great purchase!

[@YasuTaniina]

I know how to spin and have 2 spinning wheels myself, so I was really hoping to hear about the spinning wheel. Do tell us in future as much as you know if it! My spinning wheels are both from the mid 1900's so not heirlooms, but we have lots of family pioneer stories that have to do with spinning. One is that my 5th great grandfather died with 9 kids at home. His wife made ends meet by spinning men's suits. She was awesome. Another great grandma was an aristocrat but she and her sister's, by the time they were 16, grew and processed all the flax to make a hope chest full of linens for their married life. She used it for tablecloths, linens, etc. They had to flee a mob for religious persecution and much to the shock of everyone she carried the mattress a mile on her back 7 months pregnant! She said she grew the flax and plucked the geese, and she refused to have her lying in without it. When she died years later she was burried in the linens she made as a teenager.

[@jayneterry8701]

My favorite is the eteger withe the display of hats and your incredible shoes you've made! I like the work you put into the two lamps, very authentic looking! Tfs

[@swordfish1929]

Hey if you love the arts and crafts movement it might be worth going to Standen House while you're in the UK later this year

[@katyliljeholm1672]

You should see Christine McConnell's video on gramophone refinishing. That might be good research to prep for your own project!

[@user-oj5bw7sl8p]

What an excellent video! The tables & the open display unit in dark wood are exquisite! Real museum pieces!

[@patmanchester8045]

All that carving was done by hand and looks really good.

[@susanstage9279]

Well I enjoy learning things from you! I find your creativity admirable! Thank you!

[@laralicari914]

I love the design of the rubber box so much it looks so cool I would love to have something like it

[@annesophieg-n]

so many pretty and fascinating things! thank you for the video 😊

[@lotsoffun4108]

I'm a painter artist (I have to write that because of the different genres of artists) but I make my own historical clothing like you and have been making them since early 2000s like you. And like you I have a Victorian art studio/sewing room 😊 I love your channel. It's my favourite.

[@heatherinparis]

So many beautiful things all in one place ❤ Loving the vibe of the red settee in the green room! 💯

[@themurrrr]

50 dollars for that gorgeous settee!?!?!? 🤯🤯🤯

[@sylviajones4907]

Oh my goodness, that lampshade was gorgeous. Excellent job!

[@marysquillacote7076]

Bailey has good taste in furniture. You have great antiques.

[@rebeccacaron8982]

Thank you for sharing your lovely pieces

[@Art_911]

Love your taste and peices! Thank you for sharing.

[@mxmstrbl]

thank you for sharing your household items with us. very nice collection

[@lesleyharris525]

Your new room is beautiful, thanks for sharing the stories about everything with us. 💖

[@nicolakunz231]

Entege is awesome and yes I would Sweat if I had to move thar too. I vote for a gramophone refurbishing video! Your hair looks lovely. I almost saved this video for dinner time but am glad I indulged.

[@becauseimafan]

I'd love to see gramophone video too!!

[@nautifella]

Wonderful video. I have two hidden rooms in my home. At first I was afraid they would be too obvious. But nobody noticed. The key is to not use gorgeous, carved wooden doors. If you do have a match made, they will deserve pride of place in any room lucky enough to have them. I do like the idea of using them as wall decoration. At present I am doing a room-by-room, piece-by-piece Victorian remodel of my home. I'm starting with paint. I just bought some damask (damask like?) stencils. I plan on doing all the woodwork myself, Once I get a CNC router I'll be set to recreate some of the amazing carved pieces of this much beloved period.

[@marathorne6821]

Thank you for a fascinating window into the past, Nicole! Thoroughly enjoyable 😊

[@brendamattox7558]

I could listen to you talk for hours about all your cool old stuff as I am very much the same. I wish you could have talked about the Frazier's Dairy milk jug as I was also born and raised in Frankfort , Indiana and know that name well. My maiden name was Sneathen.

[@robintheparttimesewer6798]

Everything looks lovely. Thank you for the tour.

[@CassiBlack]

I like to play a game of spotting different background objects in KZbin videos, so it’s really cool to get a close up view of all your antiques! I would love to collect more antiques when I have my own place, but for now I just don’t have the room for it. I do have a few pieces that are probably more on the vintage side (including a chest from my g grandma (maybe early to mid 20th c?) and a tea set from Japan c1950s?) I’m the self-proclaimed “family historian” so I have quite a few items earmarked for me in the future!

[@MrKaffiend]

Fellow Merry Blackbird Society friend!! ♥And such a lovely box to keep them in!

[@bobbibuttons8730]

Nicole, you are drop dead gorgeous with your hair that colour, it really suits you. Also, those earrings are fabulous.

[@TheNetymags]

The whole room is amazing! The lamp is so well done. Thanks for sharing a bit of there story

[@gloglos100]

I love the wall paint colour. And your hair accent.

[@DebiSmithPouliot]

My mother-in-law was a partner in an antique store here in New England. My husband and I used to go weekly, sometimes several times a week to auctions either with her or by ourselves. We had a space in her shop as a part time business. We managed to do all that while both of use worked full time in the corporate world. It was a great learning experience. I still have many of the items still crammed into this house. But what I wanted to mention was the yarn or skein winder. In the quick look at it, it appears that the arms are on backwards or the small handle on the arm is on the wrong side. That handle was used to actually spin the arms. I knit and spin fiber and I have an antique yarn winder here too. I also have a beautiful antique spinning wheel from the mid 1700-early 1800. Personally, I love antiques. The have such great stories to tell us.

[@dawntreader2420]

Incredible. Just... stunning.

[@LynnHermione]

A banjolele! Such an item almost broke up Jeeves and Wooster!

[@jennycorey8968]

I could hardly pay attention to what you were saying because I was so focused on your hair. It's gorgeous!

[@EmeraldVideosNL]

Appreciate this video so much. I always enjoy your 'set' and wondered about them. I love houses decorated in this way. I'd love to hear stories of their history any time, so antique videos, yes please! I would watch you taking apart and doing maintenance on the grammaphone any day.

[@donnamcardle8928]

I really enjoyed seeing your treasures! Thank you

[@elainebye9090]

What a treat. Thanks for sharing.

[@elfieblue3175]

Thank-you for telling a bit about the pieces in your set. I stand in awe of the etager piece, and adore your radio housing. It reminds me a little of my grandparents' television set from the 70s - not sure how old it was when I was a kid, but it was a colour tv, and a piece of furniture in its own right, just like your radio. I also just inherited my mother's plate silver and some silverware (the kind with its own storage box!). Some pieces I polished by hand, but then got smart and put the rest in a bath of freshly-boiled water, with all the pieces in contact with plenty of aluminum foil, and dumped in about half a cup of baking soda. It took mere minutes for the silver to electrolyse back to its shiny glory. Use glass or ceramic containers for the bath, as you may inadvertently steal electrons from a metal pot instead of the aluminum. Good luck, and maybe do a video of the polishing? So satisfying to see the before and after...